Ashes to Ashes
by Quince Fen
Summary: Roman Torchwick is many things, but above all else he is a survivor. Betrayed and abandoned by their employer during the battle of Beacon, Roman and Neo find themselves begrudgingly working for the very same people they've been fighting against all this time.


Disclaimer: I do not own RWBY in any way as you might expect. That right belongs entirely to Monty Oum and Rooster Teeth.

Author's Notes: _Hey, what's going on guys? Finally getting to write my first RWBY story, so I'm feeling pretty good. I love RWBY to death, and I've been dying to start this story for a while now. To be honest, Roman was one of my all time favorite characters in RWBY, right up there with Ruby herself, and I hated seeing him die like that at the end of Volume 3. His character had SO much more potential, and I loved how there seemed to be some kind of bond or relationship between him and Neo. So this story will be my shot at everything that I feel was left undone and then some. Anyway, I hope you enjoy!_

 _Also, despite how much people do or see this, I feel like I must pay my respects to Monty Oum here. He was a wonderful man, and has inspired me greatly since I've learned about him. His deep passion for RWBY and for what he does strikes home with me, and has helped and motivated me to really get myself into gear, not only in my hobbies, but in my personal life too. So this one is for you Monty. We all miss you, and thank you._

Summary: Roman Torchwick is many things, but above all else he is a survivor. Betrayed and abandoned by their employer during the battle of Beacon, Roman and Neo find themselves begrudgingly working for the very same people they've been fighting against all this time.

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Ashes to Ashes

Chapter 1

~ Get The Chillz ~

* * *

Neo was pissed.

Everything was going perfectly. They had control of an Atlesian military airship, hacked the Elysium Knights, and had full control over the skies. Everything was going according to plan until that girl in red showed up. Even then things should have been easy. She was still young and inexperienced. She stood no chance against either one of them, never mind against both of them at the same time, but then out of all the things that Little Red could have done, she opened her parasol.

So here she is now. Hundreds of feet above the city of Vale with nearly half a dozen Grimm swarming around her looking for an easy meal. And if that wasn't bad enough she is separated from Roman now. Not that she is worried. She has learned over the years that despite his mannerisms, he is more than capable of handling himself in a fight, but it still left her more than a little frustrated with the turn of events.

With a casual flick of her leg, Neo batted off another Griffon trying to go in for the kill. She was getting close to the rooftop of a nearby building. It was a fairly tall building all things considering and had more than a little damage to its structure due to the war raging around the city, but right about now anything is better than nothing, and these Griffons were getting really annoying.

After a few more seconds of gliding, Neo folded up her parasol before falling the last 10 feet or so down to the building below. With a graceful roll she stood back up with parasol in hand and a self confident smirk on her face as she turned to face the approaching Griffons. The first Griffon thrust its claws deep into Neo's stomach before watching as the image of the colorful girl shattered before its eyes. In the next instant Neo was standing upon its back with her blade in the back of its neck and a cruel smile on her face. Without even looking behind her, she kicked off the dying Grimm's back and cut off the wings of the second Griffon trying to attack her from behind. The wingless Grimm crashed down onto the rooftop before tumbling over the edge of the building careening down to its death on the streets below. Landing back down on the fractured rooftop in a crouch, Neo stood back up and turned to face the remaining three Grimm.

The closest Griffon sent a strike straight for her throat. With practiced ease Neo ducked down avoiding the deadly claws before latching onto the arm of the griffon with the hilt of her parasol. She let momentum of the swing lift her into the air before detaching herself from the Griffon. With the grace and fluidity of a dancer, Neo twirled in the air, stabbing the Griffon twice through the side of its neck, before kicking off of the side of its body hard and launching herself and her blade through the head of the second Griffon. With her blade lodged firmly in the dead Griffon's skull, she used it as leverage to launch herself onto the Griffon's back bringing her parasol with her. Reacting quickly, Neo opened up her parasol and deflected the attack of the last remaining Griffon and sending the Grimm flying over her head before using the blade of her parasol to rip open the underbelly of the Griffon. The Griffon Neo was standing on crashed back down onto the building below disappearing into black dust and leaving Neo standing there with that ever present smirk on her face.

There is no better way to vent one's frustration than to kill some Grimm. Good times.

Glancing up at the ship in the sky, Neo pulled out her scroll before sending a quick message to Roman.

 _I landed safely. Stupid Griffons tore up my outfit a bit. Are you done with Little Red?_

After she sent the message, Neo took a moment to survey her surroundings. She could see that there was still a fair amount of fighting going on in parts of the city if the occasional explosions were anything to go by. The area she landed in seems to be largely void of both people and Grimm. The Grimm were likely congregating near wherever the heaviest fighting was, so as long as she avoided those areas she should be able to get around without too much trouble.

After looking around for a few more moments Neo glanced back down at her scroll and frowned. It was unlike Roman to not reply to her messages, and there is no way that Red could be giving him that much trouble.

 _Roman?_

Neo tried again, sending a quick message to him. A few moments later, still nothing. Neo's frown deepened. There is no way Red could possibly be holding her own against Roman which made her feel all the more uneasy.

 _Roman? what's going o-_

Neo stopped for a moment catching something out of the corner of her eye. Glancing back up into the sky she saw something that made her heart stop. The ship that she was on with Roman just minutes ago was now falling from the sky. Even from where she was it was clear that explosions were rocking the ship as it made its deadly descent down to Vale. Neo could only watch with wide eyes as the ship crashed in the city, exploding and lighting up the night time sky with its brilliance. Frantic, Neo typed away at her scroll.

 _Roman! The airship just crashed into Vale! What happened? Did you make it off safe?!_

Neo stared down at her scroll anxiously awaiting a response. Normally she wouldn't be too worried. Roman was more than capable of taking care of himself, and he had an unreal ability to make it out of any sticky situation he might find himself in, but the distinct lack of messages from Roman was leaving a horrible sinking feeling in her gut. He would always respond to her whenever she messaged him even if it was just a word or two of acknowledgement when he was busy.

 _Roman, This isn't funny…_

Roman always liked to joke around, but he would never stoop to something like this. The horrible feeling in her gut only continued to grow worse and worse. There was no way Roman could be dead. There was just no way. He promised. He _promised_ her. So there was just no way he could be dead. He wouldn't just leave her like that.

Neo stared at her scroll for a few more moments before pocketing it and jumping off of the building, using her parasol to glide her way down to the streets below. She had to get to the crash site and find Roman. There was no way he would die on her like that. She had to find him!

* * *

Golden eyes watched as the Atlesian airship crashed into the city of Vale.

"Cinder... Roman and Neo were on that ship… What should we do?" Emerald asked from behind. To her left, Mercury continued to record the chaos happening all around them, making especially sure to record the Atlas military vessel crashing into Vale. The three of them were standing atop of a large building outside of Beacon Tower. The majority of the fighting in Beacon academy has come to a close as most of the students have evacuated or are waiting for evacuation at the docks.

"Roman… You have failed me for the last time." Cinder murmured softly as she narrowed her eyes at the burning wreckage that was once a mighty airship. Turning around Cinder locked eyes with her henchmen. "Roman has become a liability. Emerald, I want you to head to the city and go to the crash site. Chances are they are both dead, but if they aren't I want you to… tie up loose ends."

"What?! But Roman and Neo are our allies! Why would you-"

 _Slap!_

Cinder backhanded Emerald hard across the face sending the green haired girl down to the ground. Emerald could only hold up a hand to her cheek as she looked up in shock at Cinder with a trace of fear in her eyes.

"I believe I have already told you once before to not mistake your position, and you know how much I hate to repeat myself." Cinder spoke slowly as she knelt down to eye level with Emerald. Intimidating amber eyes boring into red ones. Mercury could only glance back and forth between Emerald and Cinder before taking a risk and stepping forward.

"Let me go take care of the little rats. I need to stretch my legs a bit still after laying low for so long. Emerald can continue the broadcast." Mercury suggested, stretching his legs a bit for emphasis. Cinder glanced up at Mercury and scrutinized him for a moment before standing up and turning her attention back towards Beacon Tower and the group of students gathering outside of its doors.

"That's fine. Just don't take too long. We are on a schedule and I will _not_ tolerate any more failures tonight. Meanwhile, I think it's time for me to pay a visit to our dear old friend Ozpin." Cinder stated with finality as she leapt off of the building.

Mercury let out the breath he was holding and turned towards Emerald who was still on the floor with her hand to her cheek. He crouched down to her level and placed his free hand on her shoulder, getting her to look at him. No words were said, just a clear warning conveyed through his eyes as he left the scroll in her hands and stood back up. He turned away, glancing back only for a moment before taking off towards the docks leaving Emerald alone on the rooftop.

* * *

The giant metal carcass that was once a military vessel now lies in pieces. Giant portions of the once daunting airship lies scattered around the ruined portion of the city that it landed in. Smaller debris is strewn about and fire ravaged nearly everything in ground zero. Debris from the airship mixed with rubble from the leveled city buildings creating treacherous terrain. Neo could even see mangled corpses of Atlesian soldiers in the wreckage. The fires raging across ground zero cast a sickening red glow on everything around her that was made all the more eerie by the dark night sky. It was like a scene from hell, and Roman was in here somewhere.

Neo has been searching the crash site for almost a half an hour now, and there was still no sign of her missing partner. Every minute that passed made the gut wrenching pain in her chest tighten more and more. Every minute that passed made the emotions that she has been repressing swell up and threaten to overwhelm her. With every minute that passed, her hope for seeing her precious partner again dwindled bit by bit. Even now, covered in ash and sorting through burning wreckage, Neo continued to periodically check her scroll _hoping_ that Roman had actually made it off the ship before its final moments.

But there was nothing. No messages. No missed calls. No signs of Roman anywhere.

But the worst thing was the soldiers. Neo felt little pity for the soldiers. Sure, they weren't meant to die, but it was also a part of their job. A likely inevitability that comes with the uniform. It was a fact of life that people were going to die in the world they live in, so no, Neo didn't feel particularly bad about this outcome. But it was the fact they were _all_ dead that bothered Neo. No groans of pain or cries for help. No signs of life anywhere.

No survivors.

And that was what scared Neo the most. It was becoming increasingly clear that there was no way anyone could have survived the crash. Everywhere she looked there were gruesome mangled bodies, burning flesh, or missing limbs. And every time she looked at one of nameless soldiers' faces, she could swear, for just a second, that it was Roman's face that she was looking at.

"...you... knack for… any… run out."

Neo stopped dead, hearing a voice come from deeper into the wreckage. The voice sounded a bit familiar, but it was too far away to make out any definite indications of who the voice belonged to. Going slowly as to avoid detection in case it's an Atlesian Recovery team, Neo stalked her way towards the source of the voice.

"I'm sorry… can't let her… this."

A shiver ran up Neo's spine as the voice became hauntingly familiar. She's been forced to listen to that grating voice for many months now, but it was the last voice she expected to hear here. Coming around the corner, she was welcomed to a scene that made her blood run cold. Mercury was standing several yards away with his back turned towards her. Beneath him was the bloodied and injured body of her partner. Roman lay unconscious near a large body of burning wreckage. His jacket was torn and stained with blood, and a large metal rod was impaled through his left leg. If it wasn't for the faint rise and fall of his chest, she would have thought that he was dead.

Movement from Mercury quickly caught her eye as he lifted his leg up as if in preparation to finish what the crash had started.

"This is goodbye, Roman."

Reacting quickly, Neo launched herself at Mercury forcing him away from Roman's prone form. Landing gracefully on her feet, she stood protectively in front of Roman with her parasol at the ready to react to any sudden attacks towards either Roman or herself. Mercury quickly stood to address his sudden assailant, only to be stunned to see Neo standing in front of Roman. Her eyes were glinting with rage and her lips were drawn back in a silent snarl. Brushing it off, he relaxed back into his cocky grin.

"Well, well. Look who's here. I was just getting to the best part, but I suppose you being here helps speed things along."

Not letting her guard down for a moment, Neo reaches into her pocket for her scroll. Without taking her eyes off Mercury, she begins typing away. Years of practice out of necessity certainly pays off as she types out a swift and flawless message, her parasol never once leaving it's defensive stance, and her eyes locked on her new found enemy.

 _Why are you doing this? Why did you try to kill Roman?_

"Try not to take it personally. Cinder is just tired of your constant failures. But we can't just let you go of course, so here I am." Mercury answered. His crooked grin grew as he took a few casual steps forward. He crouched down slightly preparing for what was to come. "No hard feelings, right?"

Before either side could act, the thunderous sound of a gunshot rang through the air as Mercury quickly backpedaled to avoid the deadly projectile. With a quick handspring he regained his balance and turned to face his second unwelcomed guest of the night. Neo quickly turned too in order to face the mysterious newcomer, but she stopped dead and her breath hitched. Standing there with a smoking revolver in hand was the intimidating form of one General Ironwood. His shirt torn to shreds revealing his robotic arm in all it's metallic glory. His face was grim and cold. Of the many people that could have shown up, Ironwood was one of the worst. There was no way Neo could defeat the General, nevermind protect Roman at the same time, and she was _not_ going to abandon Roman here and run. Never.

"Well it seems I'm out of time." Mercury grimaced. Gone was his cocky smile and his laid back demeanor as he backed away. He was outnumbered and outmatched, and he knew it. Turning quickly, Mercury launched himself away from the group as he sprinted away. Ironwood fired a few shots at the retreating figure, but they were all met head on by shots from Mercury's own robotic legs. Using the added momentum of the bullets, Mercury flew farther into the burning wreckage before disappearing from view entirely as he used the hellish landscape and treacherous terrain to his advantage.

As silence briefly settled over the clearing with the disappearance of Mercury, Ironwood quickly turned his revolver once more towards Roman and Neo. Without a second thought Neo placed herself between Ironwood and Roman. She knew she stood no chance, but she wouldn't abandon Roman either. Not when he's never abandoned her. Glancing back briefly to the man in question, her heart began to clench again. He was abnormally still, only his breathing signified his continued presence in their world. She knew without a doubt in her mind that she was watching her partner die right in front of her eyes. He needed a doctor immediately, but she wouldn't be able to move him on her own without making things worse, and even if she did manage to escape with Roman she would only be forced to watch him die a slow and painful death. With Cinder's betrayal she now had no way of getting him the care he needed.

Turning her attention back to Ironwood, she noticed he still hasn't moved a muscle. It seemed like he was studying them. Or perhaps he was merely waiting for her to make the first move. She was out of options, and she had no way of saving Roman on her own. Glancing once more behind her, weighing her options, Neo turned to fully face Ironwood as she reached into her pocket once more. Pulling out her scroll, she typed out a message in one last desperate attempt to keep the man behind her alive.

 _Please, save him!_

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Thanks for Reading! If you liked the story, It would mean the world to me if you dropped a quick review to tell me. I often lack the motivation to sit down and write, so if people enjoyed what I wrote it would really help me kick myself into gear.


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